Black Sails: Rogue's Skin
by Leonor 'Ner
Summary: Bella is face to face with the man she spent the last five years searching for. Together, they can finally find Salvatore's Ark and fulfil her father's dream. But not everything seems that easy and she soon realises that her father's old enemy, knows about the ark as well.
1. Preface

**Black Sails  
Rogue's Skin**

* * *

**Preface**

The house was burning to ash. He could only stare at it while the roaring flames licked the wood. He could still hear the agonising screams coming from within. He had no choice, he had to kill them. Every single one of them!

Turning his back, he mounted his horse and approached a blue eyed man whose smile seemed darkened by the flames.

_"I trust you're satisfied now"_ He said sullenly. The other man glanced his way and then galloped away, leaving him alone to bear what he had done.

_"I'm so sorry"_ He murmured without looking at the fire. With a kick, he was galloping after the man that made him murder his own brother.


	2. I

**Black Sails**  
**Rogue's Skin**

* * *

**I.**

The sun warmed down the streets of Nassau, its habitants and visitors sweating and cursing under the hot weather. Down at the bay, ships were unloading their cargo to later be sold. The men were screaming at each other, laughing with some private and dirty joke and hurrying their work so they could go get a drink and, eventually, go to bed with one or two prostitutes back at the brothel.

But that didn't matter to Billy. He was too deep in thought to even care about what the others were saying. His eyes were rummaging the beach, taking notice of everyone and everything happening around him. So far nothing caught his attention even though he kept feeling observed. He put his uncomfortable feeling behind and concentrated on his job but always on the lookout for anything strange.

_"Hey Billy"_ Billy lifted his head and saw Gates approaching him in big and hurried steps. _"Where's the Captain?"_

_"He said he had business to attend with Guthrie." _Billy answered picking up one of the many barrels of their last raid as if it weighted nothing.

_"And you let him go by himself?"_ Gates asked worriedly.

_"He didn't let me go with him"_ Billy replied in defence. _"What did you want me to do, shoot him so I could go with him?"_

Gates groaned and looked around at the rest of the men.

_"What's going on?"_

Gates turned to him and opened his mouth only to close it again. Billy narrowed his eyes at him but Gates' lips turned into a thin line.

_"Sorry lad, cannot tell you"_ He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, he clapped his hands and rubbed them, determination clear in his stance. _"I need you to do me a favour."_

Billy picked up another barrel and put it down at the cart. Gates waited until Billy turned to him and then dropped his voice.

_"You go fetch the Captain and tell him I need to talk to him immediately."_

_"Why don't you go?"_ Billy asked raising an eyebrow.

_"Because"_ Gates began as if lecturing a child and Billy's shoulders shrunk slightly at the tone of his voice. _"I need to do something first that no-one, not even you, can know about. Is that understood?"_

Gates didn't wait for an answer and climbed his way out of the beach and into Nassau. Billy watched him go with a swirl of questions on his head. It wasn't usual for Gates not to trust him with information concerning the Captain so something must've been off. Placing the last of his barrels on the cart, he took off and went to find the brothel.

...

The brothel was hot, dry and noisy. The laughter and screams from both prostitutes and drunken men were overwhelming. The drinks tasted sour and bitter and the food rotten. The last of her coins went to some old and smelly clothes. They were better than her torn and filthy dress.

_"There you go honey"_ A busty woman said putting a mug of rum in front of her.

_"I don't have money to pay you..."_

_"Nonsense!"_ The woman cut her off with a motherly smile. _"This one's on the house."_ She winked and went back to the bar where some men were waiting to be served.

Bella picked up the mug and took a thirsty sip, the rum scratching her dry throat as it went down. She looked around and tried to decipher what to do next.

_ "What's a beauty like ya doing drinking all alone?"_ A male voice asked and Bella looked up. A man stood over her table, his rotten teeth flashing an amused smile. _"Do ya need some company?"_

_"Leave me be"_ Bella's voice trembled slightly but she was thankful that she sounded stronger than what she felt. The man chuckled and grabbed a chair, sitting so close to her Bella could smell his drunken breath. _"Stay the fuck away from me."_

_"Come now... there's no need to be nasty"_ He said leaning close and Bella stood up, the chair scratching the floor and then crashing down. The man laughed and everyone around them stopped and watched. Bella felt herself flush angrily and took a step away from the man. But he grabbed her arm and pulled her to him. _"Where do ya think ya're going?"_

_"Let me go"_ Bella said trying to let go but feeling his fingers tighten around her skin.

_"Ya shouldn't have been impolite"_ He stood from his chair and placed a hand on her chin, lifting her head so they were face to face. _"We have to work on that now, won't we?"_

Bella tried to find the mug feeling the hard wooden table beneath her fingers. The man's hand slid to her chest and Bella's air caught in her throat. She fumbled searching for the mug while he then squeezed her chest. Bella felt disgusted. She finally caught the handle of her mug and hit him hard in the head with it, the mug shattering into small pieces while he stumbled backwards, a pained scream and a swear on his lips.

Bella felt suddenly weak and aware of what she had done. She looked around and everyone was staring at her, even the gentle woman who had given her the rum. They were simple spectators with no wish to help her at all.

_The bloody bastards!_ She thought.

She dropped the remains of the handle and was about to turn and run away when someone grabbed her from behind and pinned her down at the table. Pain shoot from her head and she was momentarily dizzy.

_"You little whore"_ Her assaulter grunted at her ear and she almost froze in place when she felt his hand under her shirt.

_"Let me go"_ She screamed but no-one came to her aid. She tried to kick him but all she managed was to hit her knees hard on the table. One of his hands was at her neck and she couldn't move her body with the weight of his on top of her. She screamed again but he shushed her, his breath brushing her cheek.

_"Shut the fuck up bitch!"_

Bella felt hot tears stinging her eyes and she bit her lips tasting blood. She wouldn't scream or weep.

Suddenly she heard someone scream and the weight of her assaulter's body off her. She turned around in time to see someone knocking him over, punching one, two, three times before crouching next to the bloody man.

_"If I see you here again, I'll kill you"_ He said and Bella's assaulter's eyes widen in fear or recognition, she wasn't sure which. _"Good! Now go!"_

Her assaulter painfully jumped to his feet and stormed out of the brothel. Bella was out of breath and her knees buckled. She felt her body begin to fall but then someone secured her in place.

_"Hey, it's alright, it's alright"_ Her saviour helped her sit on the closest chair and signal at someone.

That someone brought him a cloth and another mug of something. He picked up the cloth and raised his hands in front of him.

_"Can I see that?"_ He said and Bella stared at him without understanding. He crouched in front of her and touched her forehead with the cloth. That's when she felt the sting on her forehead and understood what he meant. She must've hit her head when she was thrown at the table.

The stranger cleaned her wound without saying anything. When he was done with his work, he picked up the mug and placed it on her trembling hands, urging her to drink it. It was clear and fresh water with a hint of some old rum. She drank it in one single gulp.

_"Are you alright?"_ He asked surprising her. She lifted her head to him and saw concern in his blue eyes. She could only nod slightly with her throbbing head. _"He won't touch you again."_

_"Thank you"_ She finally said lifting her eyes to him. _"For stopping him."_

_"You should be careful around here"_ He warned her narrowing his eyes at her wound. He picked up the cloth once again, now drenched in her blood, and cleaned it again. _"I guess you hit your head harder than what I thought"_

The way he said it made her chuckle and she saw a small smile play on his lips. He was muscular and big, his eyes blue and clear. Contrary to almost every single man in Nassau, his hair was cut short.

_"I'll survive"_ She replied.

_"What the fuck happened here?"_ Someone asked and the stranger stood up abruptly almost dropping the cloth. Bella saw a beautiful woman, which she recognised as Eleanor Guthrie, approaching them followed by a man with hard features and piercing green eyes.

_"A man was trying to rape her ma'am"_ The stranger said and Eleanor's expression was shocked but composed. She sat down at the table near Bella and looked at her seriously.

_"That wound looks bad"_ She commented searching her face. Bella noticed that she had a small bruise on her cheek but apart from that Eleanor looked almost eerie. _"I can get someone to take care of that."_

_"Billy?"_ The man that followed Eleanor called and Bella noticed that the stranger, Billy, stiffened slightly. _"What are you doing here?"_

_"I actually came to tell you that Gates is looking for you"_ Billy said something at the other man's ear and they both stared at each other, no more words needed between them.

Bella's heart drummed in her chest. Was that...? Could it be...?

_"Eleanor, I have to go."_ He said sulkily and Eleanor acknowledged his dismissal with a nod of her head. He turned on his heels and stormed out of the brothel in big quick steps. Bella noticed that Billy seemed torn between going and staying and he looked at Eleanor.

_"Go, I watch over her."_ Eleanor said with a small smile on her lips and Bella felt her cheeks burn slightly. Billy nodded and went after his Captain, his footsteps echoing. Bella watched until his figure disappeared at the door before turning to Eleanor. _"Come, you look tired."_

Bella followed Eleanor through a door where a dark skin man waited. When he saw them entering, he immediately closed the door behind them and went to fetch some water, clean cloth and something that looked like a balsam.

_"What happened?"_ He asked Eleanor and she told him what she knew. Bella stood there, listening to them and allowing them to take care of her wound. She couldn't allow herself to savour these small comforts thought. While the man, Mr. Scott, bandaged her head with a piece of clean linen, Eleanor was shouting something from the door.

Bella wanted to get out, to run after Billy and his Captain and ask everything she needed to ask. If that man was Captain Flint, then her search was over and she could finally fulfil her promise.

...

A man was standing on a tall balcony watching Nassau's streets and drinking. A prostitute slept on his bed, her bare skin tanned and sparkling with sweat. His bare chest still bore the marks of her nails from the previous night.

A gentle knock at his door made her stir and Vane closed the window and literally threw her clothes at the prostitute, her face confused and still sleepy.

_"You're done. Get the fuck out now!"_ He said and she literally jumped from the bed and ran out of the door. The person who had knocked entered, his face amused and eyes going from bed to the man standing before him, still half-naked. _"What do you want Jack?"_

_"Well, there's something I think you should know"_ Rackham sat down on a chair and smirked. _"Do you remember Rockwell's misfortune?"_

_"Of course I remember! I was there, remember?"_ Vane answered dressing his shirt and serving himself of more rum from a jug. _"What about it?"_

_"There is new information concerning that misfortune of his"_ Rackham searched inside his jacket pocket and retrieve a piece of paper_. "It seems that his precious map wasn't destroyed after all."_

_"What do you mean? I was there; I saw the place fucking burn."_ Vane retorted drinking thirstily and harshly staring at Rackham. _"What's that?"_

_"This..."_ Rackham waved the paper in front of him and Vane took it from his hand. Rackham sulked. _"That is a letter my informer intersected. It's submitted to a certain Captain."_

_ "Flint?"_ Vane asked and began reading the letter. With each sentence his eyes widen and his temper madden. _"What? This isn't possible."_

_"Apparently it is._" Rackham said pouring himself rum and drinking while Vane tore the paper. _"It seems like Rockwell's mistaken. That you were mistaken."_

_"Does Flint know about this?"_

_"My informer was very good. He killed the messenger and hid his body. No-one knows about this."_

_"Someone is looking for him. Who is he?"_ Vane asked furious, his fingers digging into the table while he stared at his rascal.

_"It isn't a "he" if you must know."_ Rackham saw Vane's eyes narrow and when he nodded with his head, a silent conversation between them, Vane finally understood.

_"Rockwell didn't kill her after all."_


	3. II

**Black Sails  
Rogue's Skin**

* * *

**II.**

"Ah, Captain" Said Gates when Flint approached him at the helm of his ship. Gates face was flushed and there was a small smile on his lips Flint couldn't decipher.

"What is it Gates?" Flint asked annoyed, Billy following in his footsteps but staying slightly apart.

"I received some news that you might find quite interesting." Gates replied and looked at Billy who simply shrunk his shoulders and stepped as further away as he could. Flint raised an eyebrow and waited_. _"It seems there's someone on this island looking for you."

"There's always someone somewhere looking for me" Flint retorted taking a deep calming breath. He trusted Gates better than anyone else so he wouldn't lose his temper with him. If he said he had something for him, he'd better wait and hear it.

"I know, but this someone is someone you know and someone who has information for you." Gates looked expectantly at him as if waiting for Flint to discover what he was talking about. When Flint didn't answered and urged him to continue with a hotly glare, Gates sighed, took a piece of paper from his pocket and waved it in front of them both. "I got this from a boy who got this from an informer who was told by a person to try to find you to tell you the news."

"Just go straight to the point Gates." Flint said angrily without interested in the paper. He could see Gates disappointment towards his news but he immediately straightened up and spread open the letter.

"What do you about _Isabella McKey_?"

Flint's head snapped to Gates, his green eyes boring into the other man's ones as if life and death depended on it. Gates seemed taken aback by his glare but otherwise unmoving, quite calm almost to the point of being serene.

...

Bella's head finally stopped spinning and she stood up and trembling legs. She was weaker than what she thought she was and the shock of her assault didn't help her drumming heart. Mr. Scott and Eleanor left her alone to rest but Bella's mind was buzzing with possibilities.

Was that man the person she was looking for? Did she finally found him after all this time? After all this time?

She heard stories of him from her father. He used to tell her about their adventures together and plans for the future. All she knew about him was those tales, nothing more. And those tales were the most important piece of information she had of him. She clung to it with all her might hoping it would one day lead to him.

Approaching the window she allowed the hot sunlight bathe her flushed features and dream of a possible future. For five years she has been scared of letting herself imagine a future. For five years she had given up everything she had in pursuit of her father's dream, to fulfil it when he no longer could. And now, after five years, she finally felt the dream palpitating, forming into a physical form in front of her.

Filling her lungs with air, she stormed out of the room, peeking to see if Mr. Scott or Eleanor weren't nearby, and left the brothel behind. She couldn't stay indoors any longer. She had to try to find him on her own.

...

Captain Flint, Gates and Billy reached the harbour and soon were setting their pace into the streets of Nassau once again. Billy could see the strange and almost ghostly look on his Captain's eyes, his jaw set tight and his hands in fists. Whatever he and Gates talked about in the confinement of the Walrus damped his already arrogant humour.

"Billy, stay here" Gates said over his shoulder and Billy halted, his mouth opened to reply but immediately cut off by Gates who turned to face him. Flint simply continued walking without even looking back at them. "Don't argue and follow orders."

"What did you told him?" Billy asked pointing with his chin to the Captain. "It seems like he saw a ghost."

"It's none of your business" Gates answered perhaps a little bit too harshly turning on his heel. But he stopped and looked back with a conflicted expression. "For now at least."

Billy stood there, looking at the backs of his companions, his mind a twirl of confusion and questions. He felt useless and such feeling made him nervous, edgy. There was something Gates wasn't telling him and being in the dark wasn't something Billy appreciated.

"Fuck it!" Billy grumbled under his breath kicking the sand.

Staring at the ocean before him, his mind returned to the girl he saved it felt hours ago. He shook his head but her freckled pale face and hazel-brown eyes kept looking at him, scared and shocked but determined and fierce. He wanted to shout at all those people for not doing anything to help her. They just stood there like statues, watching a crime being committed under their noses. He was a pirate and pirates didn't lead an honourable life that was for sure. But raping or allowing someone to rape an innocent girl wasn't part of his guideline rules of piracy.

Determination set his shoulders straight and head high and he stormed back to Nassau. He was going to search for her and find her and know who she was. No matter what!

...

Bella's clothes were enough to disguise her but her long auburn hair in the sun made the men look her way. She had to cover it if she wanted to go unnoticed. How she had survived in Nassau her first three days with a torn dress was beyond her comprehension.

She searched her pockets for a coin but her hand found nothing. She had no money and no goods to trade for food or stay or anything she might need. With a heavy sigh, she stopped under a balcony, the shade refreshing her hot body despite her dry throat. She should have stayed at the brothel where it was cool.

The street was busy with merchants, beggars and prostitutes. There were several stalls with textiles, fruit and jewellery. Maybe she could steal something to eat so her wobbly legs would endure her search. But she was scared of stealing because she knew what they would do if she got caught. Still, she needed to eat something or else she would faint.

Approaching the stall, she readied herself to act as normal as she could. She had stolen before but her heart always seemed like it was about to burst out of her chest. Her hand was ready to grab a piece of fruit when she froze in place.

A deep voice behind her made her shrink and silently gasp. She knew this voice and the remembrance almost took away the little strength she possessed.

"Where is Anne?" The voice asked and she dared look back only a little. The man walking the street was exactly as she remembered, only thirteen years older. "Go get her."

There was a funny looking man with him that mockingly bowed his head and turned the other way around, rushing his way back from where they supposedly came from. Bella tore her gaze from him and stared at the long haired and blue eyed one that walked by her without a second glance in her direction.

Her heart sank and her feet began running without her commanding it or knowing where she was going. She just needed to get out of there, to get as far away from that man as she possible could. She ran through the streets of Nassau bumping against people who swore in her direction, turning into dead ends and feeling her head upside-down. She couldn't breathe.

Finally, she stopped under an arch, its shade stretching long on the sand. She looked back to make sure she hadn't been followed and took an unsteady deep breath. Her heart was hammering within her chest and she thought it was about to explode with the stinging pain. She leaned against the arch and sat down, trembling and crying.

Both her dream and her nightmare seemed to be hand in hand to face her. When she thought the past no longer haunt her, Vane proved her wrong.

...

Gates sat down with a mug of rum in his hand. Flint wasn't drinking anything, his eyes distant and colder than usual. He was staring down at the letter in his trembling hand and Gates could identity both fear and wonder in his rough features.

"How did it happen?" He asked abruptly and Gates almost choked on his drink.

"I have no idea" Gates replied. "I told the boy to find the informer for me. You can ask him that yourself."

"But it's not possible" Flint continued and Gates heard a tone he didn't recognised. It froze him in place. "It's simply not possible"

"Whether it's possible or not, you can bet I have no clue" Gates signalled for one more round of drinks. "But truth is, the letter says Isabella McKey is alive and has been searching for you all this time."

"And you trust this information?" Flint looked Gates square in the face. All he could do was stare back, all certainty displayed in his eyes. "I see."

"According to the letter, she's here in Nassau. We should try to find her." Gates retorted, his second round of drinks clinking their way to their table. "It also said something about some information she possesses with her that are highly important. Any ideas on that?"

"I have my theories." Flint answered with a small glimpse of hope in his eyes that suddenly disappeared. "Though I don't think they can actually be true."

"Why's that?"

"When news about McKey's death reached me" Flint started gloomily. "I tried to find his family and all his clues about Salvatore's Ark. But when I got to England, I found out that everything he had about the Ark was destroyed in the fire that took his life... and his entire family as well."

"Rockwell's doing?" Gates asked taking a sip on his rum.

"Who else's?" Flint's fist smacked the table, their drinks spilling and staining the rough and dark wood. "Rumour has it that Rockwell was so distraught about his brother's death he tried to take his own life."

Flint's laugh was so sinister it made Gates shiver from head to toe and almost choke again on his drink. He carefully placed his mug on the table and looked at Flint.

"I bet he wasn't expecting that. He must be really pissed!"

"No sense in dwelling in the past now" Gates said calmly, squeezing Flint's upper arm sympathetically. He didn't remember the last time Flint sounded so distraught, so heart-broken and resentful. It made him a complete new man, a man his crew didn't know and would eventually never know.

...

Rackham entered the tent without even announcing his presence. Inside, Anne Bonny was lacing her boots while a man, someone Rackham didn't like at all from Vane's crew, laid down snoring like a pig.

"What the fuck are you doing?" He asked her and she raised her eyebrows, her red hair falling from her shoulder. "Vane's calling for you."

"Hey" She kicked the man on her bench and his head snapped to her angrily. "I want you out. Now!"

"What the fuck?" He asked but then was silent when he saw Rackham. He stood up and dressed his pants as rapidly as he could. "For fucks sake... A person can't even get laid properly around here..."

"Just get out" Anne said without looking at the man and picking up her hat.

He grumbled something else more under his breath and dressed his shirt. But Rackham sighed and shoved him out of the tent, throwing the rest of his clothes afterwards.

"Finally!" He said sitting down on Anne's bench and getting comfortable. "Seriously, couldn't you wait for me? You know I hate when you fuck other man."

"Please!" Anne laughed scornfully. "My life doesn't revolve around you. What the hell do you want?"

"Well, I already told you that Vane's calling you." He replied picking at his nails and giving her a look of disdain. "There have been some developments."

"What kind of developments?"

"Salvatore's Ark kind!" Rackham answered with a lopsided grin and Anne's green eyes widen in shock. "Oh yes, dearest Anne, that kind of developments."

...

Mr. Scott opened the door and his eyes widened in surprise. Billy stood at the threshold, his blue eyes dark and his expression furious. He read the distress in the black-skin man's features but that didn't calm him down.

"If you're looking for the girl," Mr. Scott promptly said in his funny accent. "I have no idea where she is. I left her resting and last thing I know, she's gone."

Billy stared at the other man for a full minute until he tore his gaze away from him. He didn't know why he almost lost his temper, why she made him almost petrified of what could happen to her. It was making him weak and he couldn't allow it to happen.

"Did she say anything while she was here?" He asked after clearing his throat and flinching at his own voice. He sounded more desperate than what he intended.

Mr. Scott analysed him for a moment before passing by him and heading for the bar where a busty woman was cleaning some glasses.

"She didn't say anything" He answered him with his backs to Billy. "She only told us her name was Isabella."

_Isabella!_ Billy's mind repeated the name over and over until he shook his head and mentally punched himself.

Mr. Scott finally turned on his heels to look at Billy with an amused expression on his features.

"She couldn't have gone very far though" Billy raised his eyebrows and Mr. Scott chuckled lightly making him snorting. "Why are you so interested in the girl, may I ask?"

He stared at the table before Mr. Scott. Why he was so interested in the girl he had no idea. He couldn't comprehend what motivated him to try to find and protect her. He simply needed to do so. And the image of her being attacked by that drunken son-of-a-bitch made his blood boil and anger ran through his veins.

He turned away and got out before Mr. Scott could ask him more questions he couldn't decipher himself.

* * *

**I want to thank everyone who reviews/favourited/alerted this story. It means a lot to me as the author to read the amazing feedback and knowing you guys are interested in it. 3**

**I also want to let you know that this story is also being published on my personal blog (link of my profile). If you want to follow it there, you're welcome and I'll be extremely happy :)**

**And to PruRose: Yes, Billy Bones was the person who saved her ;-)**


	4. III

**Black Sails  
Rogue's Skin**

* * *

**III.**

Billy's legs were heavy. The hot sun, the confusion of Nassau's streets and his permanent fear of not finding Isabella made him weary. He spent part of his day trying to find the girl he saved but to no avail. She was nowhere to be found. Or maybe she didn't want to be found.

He had asked random people if they had seen a fragile young woman, describing her as he remembered her, clear as water. The ones that had given him some kind of information had probably lied to him in order to get a coin or two. And he cursed them for making him wander adrift.

He finally gave up his search with a heavy heart. And tracing his steps back to The Walrus, he left her image scatter, knowing it would be better to simply forget about her than dwell in the constant urge to protect her. He couldn't allow his feelings to transform him into a weak man, a weak pirate. He needed to suppress all his impulses when it came to this unknown woman or else he would go mad.

The ship was eerie in the twilight. Only he and other member of the crew were there, roaming the ship to make sure all was in order. While his pal was thirstily drinking on duty, Billy stood at the bow of the ship looking at the water and trying as hard as he could to erase Isabella's picture from his mind. It was being harder than he expected.

"Hey, Skinner" He called out to the other man who almost choked on his rum, jerking. "I'm going in for a bit."

"Aye, aye" Skinner replied cheering his drink in the air with a toothless grin. If only drinking helped ease his own mind, Billy would join Skinner in a minute.

Billy rolled his eyes and stepped inside the Captain's cabin. He and Gates were the only ones who could enter without Flint's presence. Despite being slightly terrified of his Captain's contemptuous manner, he trusted and respected him the most.

There were papers, maps, navigation tools and bottles of rum on top of the desk, all scattered around as if left in a hurry. Billy touched the compass pointing North and then out of the window to the setting sun on the Horizon. He longed for one day to captain his own ship and crew. He hoped to be as fierce as Flint though less frightful and less supercilious. Now that he thought of it, he didn't want to be like Flint at all.

A gentle tap on wood made him snap his head back. On the almost dark cabin, shades played around creating strange figures on the wooden panels. The gentle sway of the ship made the figures move like living creatures. Billy narrowed his eyes to focus on the blobs, trying to decipher their true form. That was the shadow of a chair. And that was the shadow of a cabinet...

Another tap was heard and this time he knew from where it came from, he had followed its sound. There was a chest in the cabin where Flint normally put his charts, papers; scraps mostly. With light and soundless steps, he approached it and picked up his sword. Somebody was there; he could hear it breathe though his own heartbeat drummed loudly in his ears muffling all sounds.

He picked up the latch and took three steady breaths before opening the lid of the chest. Positing his sword, he readied it and with all his courage, lifted the chest's lid, thrusting his sword forward.

A screamed pierced his ears and he stumbled backwards when a figure emerged from within the chest, startling him. He shook his head and immediately dropped his weapon as his eyes finally adjusted to the presence before him. His breath caught in his throat.

_What the...?_

...

"It can't be true." Anne said chucking mockingly. "Salvatore's Ark is nothing but a myth now. We all know its map has been destroyed ages ago."

"But that is where you are re wrong." Rackham leaned excitedly forward on his chair while Vane watched them both with daunting eyes. "You see, Roger didn't burn it all down to ashes. He made us _think_ he did when he actually planned the whole thing."

"Why stage it? It makes no sense." Anne commented picking at her nails and not interested in the conversation whatsoever. To her, the Ark was gone and there would be no way to get it back, it was simple as that.

"Of course it makes no sense." Rackham admonished her with a heavy sigh. "McKey knew that Rockwell was selling information. Not only did he found out that that Vane knew about his misleading information, he also knew about his brother's betrayal. The best way to end it all was fake the destruction of the map and all information concerning it. Quite smart, I dare say."

"But Rockwell killed McKey all the same" Anne said shrugging her shoulders. "Why would he do that if he knew that McKey hadn't burnt the map?"

"Because we only got information about this possibility _now_" Rackham answered rolling his eyes making Anne glared at him, almost wishing she could put a bullet on his brain. She hated his conceited manner when it came to intelligence.

"And what about this new information we got about the Ark? Do you trust it?"

"The information is real, alright." Vane said in a deep and hoarse voice making Rackham jump and Anne turn her head to him with a raised brow. He looked paler than usual but his eyes shone with a ferocious light that made her almost fear him. His thin lips were set on a tight smile that was dangerous; she knew that smile all too well. "I know his handwriting."

"_His_ handwriting?" Anne asked to no-one in particular but looked at Rackham expectantly.

"The fucking bastard lied to me!" Vane continued as if Anne hadn't spoken at all. "Rockwell didn't kill McKey's daughter, Isabella and she knows about the Ark. She knows where it is."

"She's going to try to find Flint" Rackham added stealing a glance at Anne. "She must have the last pieces of the puzzle or else she wouldn't go to him."

...

Bella's arm stung and her blood soaked her almost dried shirt. She heard something hit the floor and a male voice blurt out a surprised, or shocked (or both) curse.

"What the fuck?" The voice asked again and she turned her head its way, her eyes adjusting to the evening light and widening in surprise.

"_You?"_ Bella and Billy said at the same time, both staring at each other and both breaths caught at their throat. The air around them grew denser and heavy.

Suddenly her heart begun drumming loudly against her ribcage and she winced in pain when her arms involuntarily dropped to her sides, almost in defeat.

"What are you doing here?" Billy asked her while she clumsily got out of the chest, her feet tangling around themselves. She felt all her limbs numb due to her strange position within the chest, and tried to have her blood circulating. Billy waited expectantly, his eyes deep and baffling.

"I... I..." Bella looked around the cabin but couldn't escape Billy's intense eyes on her. "I need to talk to Captain Flint!"

She clenched her jaw and hands and involuntarily winced once again when her arm stung almost like hell.

"I didn't want to cut you" Billy said picking up his sword and sheathing it at his waist. He looked at her wound concerned and then up to her face. To Bella's ears he sounded almost mortified. "Can I see that?"

Bella had a sudden urge to laugh. It felt like a long time ago when he rescued her from being raped and cleaned her wound back at Nassau. It felt like they had stepped back in time but in a different place.

She sat down on the now closed chest and Billy lighted up the cabin. The candles swayed with the ship and breeze making the Captain's cabin ghostly and peculiar. When Billy crouched next to her, his eyes were dark due to the shadows.

"Why do you need to talk to my Captain?" He asked her promptly and coldly. Her heart skipped a beat with his voice and she took a deep breath before answering. It was as if he had changed personality though his features remained the same as before. She felt somewhat insecure.

"My business with your Captain is mine and mine alone" She hoped she had answered in the same bitter tone but she knew she had sounded more despondent than what she wanted. She noticed the wrinkles on his forehead.

"You shouldn't be here." He said and Bella had the distant feeling his tone wasn't supposed to sound so eager. "If you were caught by other member of the crew, you would have been killed."

Bella didn't reply. She had thought about that but was reckless enough to ignore it. She had to find Flint and leave the streets of Nassau at once. She was too scared of Vane to fear Flint's crew and his destine if she were caught by them.

She must have shown some kind of trepidation for Billy's eyes smoothed and he ripped her shirt's sleeve, its tearing sound echoing in the cabin. Bella looked at her shirt thinking she would have to manage with it now since she didn't have any more money to buy new clothes. Not even a new shirt.

"You're lucky I found you instead of Skinner." Billy commented lightly and Bella raised an eyebrow. "Drunk as he is now he would think you were a ghost."

"That would have been better than speared through." She said harshly when he accidentally squeezed her wound making it sting. "You could have killed me."

Billy didn't answered but she saw his shoulders tense and his lips pressed together in a thin line. Somehow it made her uneasy, as if her whole body was torpid and her mind foggy.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to... you... you scared me." She managed to say in a whisper and his hand squeezed her arm once again before he ripped the hem of his own shirt to bandage her arm. "Ouch!"

They were silent for a while. The tension was palpable between them, each one of them with words ready on their lips but too scared to say whatever it was they meant. Bella knew she shouldn't be inside The Walrus cabin; that she should have waited for Flint back on the shore. But Vane's voice pierced her mind and she began to shiver, remembering why she hid inside the ship and decided to wait for the man she spent all this time searching.

"I need to talk to Captain Flint, urgently." Bella broke the silence making Billy's head snap to hers, blue eyes meeting hazel-brown ones. "Please, I need to talk to him."

Billy pressed his lips together in thought and Bella was suddenly terrified that she had been mistaken about him. He looked nothing like all the pirates she came across during all this time. His blue eyes looked real, profound and alive. Apart from when they were drunk, all other men's eyes only sparkled when gold and rum were involved, not to mention the pleasurable company of women. Billy's eyes though, seemed to be constantly sparkling.

"I'll take you to him" He finally said but Bella's heart dropped to her stomach and she straightened up, her chest tight and her breathing cut off short. He had finished bandaging her arm but remained crouched in front of her.

"NO! I can't go back to shore!" She said standing up and pacing the cabin nervously. "Bring him here. Let me talk to him here. I'll wait."

"Why can't you go to shore? I'll take you, it'll be alright." Billy said standing up as well and leaning against the wooden panels, arms crossed in his chest and his eyes following her attentively, perhaps a little too concerned.

"I..." Bella froze and tried to control her breathing. When did she allow herself to feel so weak, so pathetic and so vulnerable? She needed to be stronger than that, not to fear each step and be ready to face her worst nightmares. But Vane's voice kept piercing her shield of bravery, crumbling it down in small pieces and all her strength dissolved into thin air. She looked at Billy, tears ready to fall but she blinked them away. She would be weak, but she wouldn't cry. "Please, bring Flint here. I'll do whatever you want but don't take me back to shore."

There was something in Billy's eyes, some kind of distress that let Bella hope and when he nodded with his head and took a step towards the door.

"I'm going to ask Skinner to fetch him for me" He said turning to the door. Bella sat down on the chest again, her legs giving in and her body shivering with something that felt like relief. But before leaving the cabin, Billy stopped and looked her way as if he remembered something "How did you get here and how did you get in the Captain's cabin?"

Bella chuckled and felt her anxiety leave every pore of her body for a while. The relief was welcome, even if only for a while, for a few seconds.

"I know how to swim and pick locks" She answered and Billy looked surprised, as if the idea had never occurred to him. She straightened her backs and locked eyes with him; hazel-brown and blue again. "I'm tougher than I look."

Bella thought Billy was going to say something but he closed his month, thinking twice. He lingered for a few more seconds before leaving her inside the cabin, the shadows dancing around her as if omens of what was yet to come.

Her relief didn't last long though. Somehow the silence within the cabin didn't calm her down. There was something heavy in the air, like the calm before the storm. She hoped with all her strength that she was wrong.

...

Flint wondered if he should tell Gates the absolute truth. He had buried every single memory he had of McKey, not wanting to dwell in the past. But he still remembered everything, the memory more alive than ever with each passing day. And now Isabella was in Nassau, searching for him. And he had no idea what to do because he didn't want to face her. He didn't have the courage to face Roger's daughter.

The sun had sunk on the Horizon leaving little light. He had to get back to the chambers Eleanor provided him but the thought of being alone with his own demons scared him the most. And he always thought of himself as a tough man afraid of nothing.

As he wandered through the streets with Gates at his side, he looked at every young woman that passed by him. Was that Isabella? Maybe that girl was her? No, Isabella had Roger's eyes; he remembered that from when he held her as a baby. That was before he-

"Captain!" Someone screamed and Flint halted, Gates grumbling under his breath. An old man in raggedy clothes and dishevelled grey hair was approaching them. The old man looked exhausted and when he reached them, he had to place his hands on his knees to catch his breath. "Captain, there's someone here to see you."

Gates and Flint exchanged a strange and surprised glance.

"Who sent you?" Gates asked harshly and the old man looked at him startled, as if he wasn't expecting such a ruthless tone. "Come now, answer me."

"A man, there's a man waiting for you back at the tavern." He answered fearfully but never taking a step back. He was an old brave man.

"Do you know his name?" Flint asked even more severely than Gates and this time the old man took a step back, his hands raised in front of him in defence while he took one steady step forward.

"Something McKey..." Flint's stomach churned. "An R-something McKey"

Flint's heart dropped then, his blood running cold in his vein and adrenaline making him take off without another word and without waiting for Gates who called after him. He couldn't wait any longer.

This whole day was a haze of reviving memories and he didn't like the prospect of these particular memories coming back to life, to haunt him... he would rather keep them bury than having to face them. And he felt as if the worst of his nightmares was about to come to get him and he wasn't ready for it.

_I will never be._

* * *

**Thank you all for the amazing feedback :)**


	5. IV

**Black Sails  
Rogue's Skin**

* * *

**IV.**

Billy stood outside watching Skinner leave The Walrus back to shore; his comrade's face a mixture of perplexity and drunkenness. He allowed the gentle breeze to kiss his cheek while he thought about what had happened only a few minutes ago though it felt like hours. He sure didn't expect to see Isabella again, especially on the ship, on _his_ ship. He took a moment to recognise what he was feeling and sure enough all he could feel was some sort of relief and disbelief.

_She swam all the way from shore to the ship?_

He couldn't understand her reaction when he mentioned going back to Nassau's shore. She looked scared, petrified of the idea of returning to land as if a ghost was haunting her. He couldn't help but feel that her terror was something related with the attempt of raping back at the brothel.

"It's Billy, isn't it?" Isabella's voice pierced his thoughts and he turned around in a defence stance. She stood at the cabin's door, her arms around her middle and shivering with cold. The weather back at the ship always felt wetter and colder.

"You're cold." He commented but then took another glance at her. He had noticed her slightly wet and poor clothes when he found her on Flint's cabin but he was too shocked to even bother about those details. Now she stood with a large and ragged shirt that clung slightly to her body and her teeth clattered. "Get inside the cabin. I'll fetch you some dry clothes."

"No, it's not necessary" She protested, her gentle features flushed but underneath her embarrassment, she was pale and he could see her right arm, the one he cut so stupidly, goose-bump.

"You're freezing." He remarked and ignored her protests when he decided to go below deck. Her footsteps echoed behind him and he sighed heavily. She was stubborn.

"I heard Captain Flint call you back at the brothel." She began still following him. He opened random chests scattered around below deck but none of them contain clothes. He knew where the right chest with pieces of clothes they kept just in case was but his mind was too focused on Isabella's footsteps and voice. "I never got a chance to introduce myself properly."

"You're Isabella." He said without thinking and without turning. But he heard her halt abruptly so he turned to look back at her with a reassuring smile. "Mr. Scott told me your name."

"Why would he tell you my name?" She asked suspicious and Billy chuckled. Such thing made her raise her eyebrows at him, still apprehensive. "What?"

"Nothing" Billy replied turning around and continuing his pursuit of their clothes' chest.

"Mr. Scott and Miss Guthrie? I heard them talking about Captain Flint and his crew." She continued as if their introduction didn't happen. "They said that you hunt down Spanish galleons and raid them in order to sell their cargo."

Billy smiled to himself remembering their last raid and how profitable it was. Of course the money they have earned would never be spent wisely, what with half of the men desperate for a good drink and night of unconditional pleasure. As for him, he was saving it all for his future.

_If I ever have a future!_

"I know you're all pirates and piracy is illegal – well, apparently not that much around this parts – but have you ever thought about hunting down a real treasure that would make you all rich?" Billy finally found the chest he was looking for but stopped as her words sunk in.

What the hell was she talking about? He didn't turn but heard her rapid breathing and could almost picture her uncomfortable and misplaced and such images made him slap himself mentally. What had he told himself just an hour or so ago? He wouldn't let Isabella weaken him!

"There you go!" He opened the chest and peered inside. The clothes looked as if they were never used before and Billy began picking up the smallest shirts and trousers he could find. He turned around and gave Isabella her new clothes, her face in a deep frown as she analysed each piece. "They won't fit you properly but at least you'll be warm and dry."

"You could stop being a pirate and live an ordinary life." She looked at Billy desperately, the clothes in her hands forgotten. He noticed she sounded almost too desperate, too eager and too concerned.

_And too stubborn!_

"There will never be such a thing as ordinary life for a pirate." He said after a short pause. She tensed slightly and to lighten up her mood, he shrugged and gave her a crooked smile. "Go ahead, change your clothes or else you'll get a cold."

…

Waiting for Flint was being harder than he thought. There were too many people in the tavern and he knew the dangerous that lied in Nassau. If he spoke to the wrong person, gave the wrong impression or even said the wrong thing, he was doomed.

He looked around making sure no-one was paying him any sort of attention. The pirates were all too interested in their drinks and irrational talks and songs to even glance his way. Well, apart from the blonde woman standing in front of him at the bar.

"Your face looks familiar somehow" She said looking at him attentively, her eyes fixed in his face. He hasn't been scrutinized by a woman in a very long time and such things made him uneasy.

"You shouldn't Ma'am." He said picking up his pint and raising it in cheers. "But it feels good to be watched by a beautiful woman."

"That kind of talk won't take you anywhere." She said defiantly but with a small smile playing on her lips. There was a black skinned man on the bar with her, his face deeply marked. That man he knew and he nodded in his direction acknowledging his presence. He has been helping him in these last few days, informing him about Isabella's whereabouts.

"Curse me if I intend any disrespect Ma'am" He swayed slightly, pretending to be drunker than he actually was. "Only paying my regards to a beautiful lady"

The woman chuckled and someone approached the bar shadowing him and making her expression change entirely to a sour expression and no longer amused.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" She asked and he dared look behind his shoulder to the newcomer. The face that greeted him made him paralysed and he snapped his head back around immediately. The black man's eyes widen in shock and terror but he immediately placed a mask of business while attending the new client.

"Why Eleanor, that's no way to treat a client, is it?" Vane mockingly asked sitting on the stall next to his. He tried to conceal his identity for he knew what Captain Charles Vane would do to him if he knew he was there.

Eleanor turned around and walked out of the tavern, followed by Vane whose face looked as if he was capable of murdering her right there and then. But then again, he could and he knew it first hand.

"You were lucky now" Mr. Scott said in front of him startling him slightly. "Next time you might not be that lucky."

"I need to talk to Flint" He said in a whisper and Mr. Scott's shoulders tensed. "That's the only way to make sure she's safe."

"You do know that Vane will find out eventually?" It was more of a statement than a question but he nodded gravely nevertheless. He did know and that was the reason why he was risking his own identity in Nassau. "What are you going to do when he does?"

"Make sure Flint will protect her no matter the cost."

…

"I'm getting tired of your shit Vane" Eleanor said in a harsh tone, her body filled with a sudden urge to punch him. She hated his blue eyes, his hard features, his constant attempts at having her heart back. Because he would _never_ have her back.

"You're saying that now but wait until you hear what I have to tell you." Vane teased approaching her with careful steps that she matched by stepping out of his reach. His face darkened slightly but he stopped, his tone also dropping dangerously. "I have a way to make up to you."

"Make up to me?" She looked at him in disgust and stopped herself before spitting in his face. She clenched her jaw and glared at him hard and serious. "You can't make up to me Vane; you fucked that opportunity a long time ago, remember?"

"I know how to find a treasure so big you won't be able to refuse." He continued ignoring her, leaning against the wooden house next to him and smiling maliciously. "You could finally be free from your father's chains and rule this place on your own. You won't need him, not even for a second."

Her heart began pounding but she stood her ground and didn't allow him to read her. He knew her so well, knew how to catch her attention with only a few words. And she would always fall for it, letting him ensnare her. But this time he wouldn't succeed, she wouldn't let him whisper words of temptation into her ears. She had learned her lesson a long time ago.

"I don't need your help to break me free from my father." She said defiantly and Vane roared a laugh that made her skin crawl. "I never needed your help."

"I think you are mistaken." He said with a chuckle and she fumed at him. She was letting him entangle her or else she would have left already. But there she was, waiting for more without wanting to hear anymore. "If you help me, I can guarantee you this place, the whole of Nassau and everything and everyone will be yours."

"You can't buy Nassau." She scornfully chuckled and took a careful step towards him. She noticed how his body immediately reacted to this and she marvelled on the effect she still had on him. "You can't buy its people. Nassau is made by the pirates who are brave enough to venture against the East India Company. Something you seem to be lacking at the moment."

Vane's eyes narrowed hazardously and his jaw clenched and Eleanor knew she had touched a nerve that would have repercussions. But she didn't care; she wasn't scared of him anymore.

"I will find the Ark's treasure" He began leaning on her. She could feel his sour breath on her cheeks and skin and despite her hatred towards him, she felt her stomach churn. "And you will regret having said those words."

She knew he meant it, she could see it in the depth of his eyes, and his words echoed in her mind when he left her there, staring into the emptiness and fearing, for the first time that his unspoken promise would actually bring something more than regret to her. She knew deep within her that if his words were ever to come true, everything and everyone would change.

...

_What the hell?_

Skinner was rowing back to The Walrus, humming some pathetic melody and completely alone. Billy stood there, watching his pal lazily rowing back and forth, his eyes blissful and a stupid grin on his face.

_Alone!_

"What is it?" Isabella asked behind him and he only shook his head, in total disbelief. He couldn't believe Skinner had failed him. Actually, he couldn't believe he had trusted Skinner in the first place. "Who is that?"

"That's Skinner" Billy answered stepping away from the railing. "Go back inside and let me deal with him."

To his surprise, Isabella acceded without protesting. She closed the cabin's door behind her after glancing his way in what he thought was some kind of reassurance. And just in time for Skinner was clumsily climbing his way up to the ship.

"Billy!" Skinner saluted in a high and clearly drunken tone. He opened his arms and swayed slightly before embracing Billy. He simply patted his back and then pulled away. "Billy Bones!"

"Aye!" Billy replied forcefully lifting his arm in cheers. "Skinner, where is the Captain?"

"What?" Skinner asked supporting himself against the mast. "Why do you need the Captain?"

"I told you to fetch him for me. It was urgent!"

Skinner's face was confused for a few seconds until he slapped his own forehead and then chuckled nervously.

"I couldn't find him" He said and Billy took a deep and heavy breath to control himself before his pal continued. "I looked everywhere but couldn't find him."

"Are you sure you looked everywhere? Absolutely _everywhere_?"

"Of course I did!" Skinner said straightening his backs but swaying perilously. He tried to look upset, fierce even but his drunken state made him chuckle at Billy's serious and furious expression.

"Let's go down" Billy took his pal's arm and helped him on his way below, knowing that Skinner would certainly fall asleep in the main deck. Skinner was useless, his grumbles not meaning anything at all and tangling himself on his own feet. Billy placed him on his bunk and Skinner's nonsense was immediately replaced by heavy snores.

Coming into the Captain's cabin, he saw Isabella looking out of the big window, her figure enlightened by the pale moon. She had changed clothes and looked as stunning as when he first saw her.

_Snap out of it Billy!_

She heard him coming in and turned on her heels to face him.

"We have to go to shore" He said without ceremony and Isabella's hazel-brown eyes widened in shock. "Skinner didn't found Flint but I know where he might be."

"Go to shore?" Isabella crossed her arms in her chest and bit her lip. He didn't know why but in that instant he wished he could simply comfort her. "I can't... I can't go back."

"Why are you so scared of going back to shore?" He asked carefully. Isabella's body began to tremble and she began pacing the cabin. Just like she did before when he found her. She didn't look at him, only mumbled something about not wanting to go back and he felt his patience running thin. "You know the earth is not going to swallow you, do you?"

"I simply can't go back... It's hard..." She pressed on never stopping and never looking at him.

He sighed frustrated and stepped in front of her, blocking her way and forcing her to look at him. He noticed her stubbornness on her features but her eyes were too scared.

"If you want to stay I will have to lock you up" She opened her mouth to protest but he stopped her by squeezing her shoulders hard. "I might have been lenient on you but I won't leave you alone and unchained in the ship."

Isabella's eyes blinked twice in surprise and something more he thought was apprehension but she took a deep and shuddering breath and he felt her shoulders under his rough palms relax just faintly in determination.

"I'll go back to shore with you but with only one condition" She bit her lip again so hard he thought she would bleed. "I want to be armed."

Billy laughed bitterly but then stopped when he felt her slap him hard. He was not only astonished by such attitude but also embarrassed, his ego deflating as he looked down at her. She looked angry, her cheeks bright red and her eyes teary.

"What the fuck?" He exclaimed and shook her hard, her tears now falling freely but her expression set. He felt his insides twist and he was in an internal battle against himself. He didn't want to see her crying since she was making him feel things he shouldn't be allowed to feel. But at the same time he didn't fully trusted her, at least not yet, and didn't know what her intentions were towards Flint. "If you kill Flint, I'll kill you after!"

"It's a deal!" She said in a hoarse resolve and he let her go.

...

"James Flint!"

The voice behind him was all too familiar and all too unpleasant. Turning around slowly, Flint braced himself to who he was about to see, one of his many demons from his past. He aged significantly, his once bright eyes now cold and distant. Despite it all, Rockwell McKey stood just like he did thirteen years ago; proud and stern.

"Rockwell" His voice was unsympathetic and he noticed Gates frown at the figure between them. "I wasn't expecting to see you here."

"No, you weren't" Rockwell approached them, the noise of the tavern deafened by the distance they had put between them and prying ears. "Though I'm surprised you came rushing down to meet me."

"Trust me, had I known it was you, I wouldn't even step close to this tavern."

Rockwell's eyes shone with something like wickedness but Flint matched his glare with his own hostile one. Gates cleared his throat beside them and Flint smirked.

"Gates, I believe you remember Roger's murdered." He introduced with a wave of his hand and Gates shifted uncomfortably. As for Rockwell, he set his jaw and clenched his fists, just what he wanted. His smirk grew even wider. "What? Don't tell me you don't remember having murdered your own brother and sister-in-law."

"You know nothing about that Flint" Rockwell said in a bitter tone.

"I know pretty well what happened." Flint replied approaching one dangerous step ahead and facing Rockwell head on. "What I don't know is what the fuck you're doing here?"

Rockwell faced him daringly, his eyes taking every single one of Flint's wrinkles. Thirteen years have passed since they were partners. Thirteen years since they had gone into wild adventures. And thirteen years now weighted both of them down, each battle scar pulsing in their skin.

"It's Isabella" Rockwell finally said forlornly and breaking eye-contact. Flint blinked and exchanged a quick glance with Gates. He could see his own perplexity on his mate's expression. So the letter was true. "I need to ask you a favour."

Flint laughed bitterly but his heart drummed within his chest so fiercely he thought Rockwell could hear it where he stood. He had spent the entire day wondering if he should believe in the letter, in Gates, in his own instincts. He didn't want to have hoped that Roger's daughter was alive. Because if she was, the guilt was far too painful for him to accept and deal with.

"Please, you've got to listen to me." Rockwell pleaded and it was his desperate tone that made Flint halt and look deeply into his eyes. "You've got to protect her"

"What I need to know right now is how she is alive" Flint said through his teeth and Rockwell looked scared. Flint didn't remembered Rockwell ever being so frightened in his life and it made him uncomfortable. "What did you do to her all those years ago."

"I… I couldn't… that night…" Rockwell took an unsteady deep breath and a step back. Flint allowed him to breath, watching his aged face and remembering the terrible night when his friend was killed. By his own brother. "I saved her. I couldn't kill her."

"So the bastard has a fucking soul." Flint mocked severely. Gates simply stood there, by their side, watching in silence.

"I had to kill them!" Rockwell yelled, his face red and tears about to fall from his eyes. "But I couldn't kill her. Not Bell-"

"Don't you fucking dare call her that" Flint screamed at him in rage, all his body trembling with the urge to murder the man standing before him. But he felt Gate's hand on his arm and he swallowed such vicious thoughts. Rockwell just closed his mouth, jaw clenched and eyes now hard. "How could you do that to her parents? To your brother?"

"I didn't came here to give you a report of what happened thirteen years ago" Rockwell remarked coldly, all his previous sadness vanishing. "I came here to ask you to protect her."

"Why?"

"She's after something you and I buried deep in our memories long ago. She won't rest until she finds the Ark."

"What does she knows about the Ark?" Flint felt his heart on his throat. He tried to breathe through his mouth and expel the air through his nose, his nostrils flaring.

"I don't know." Rockwell answered and Flint somehow knew he was telling the truth. "But what she knows can very well kill her."

"And you want her to find the Ark for you, is that it?" Flint narrowed his eyes at Rockwell when he shook his head, a sad and amused smile on his lips.

"No, I don't want the Ark." Rockwell replied. "Why would I want it when I have little time to live?"

"You're dying?" Flint asked curiously.

"Why? Are you feeling sorry for me? Planning on attending my funeral?"

"Over my dead body!"

"I guess it'll be over mine first." Rockwell chuckle matched his still sad smile. "Just protect Isabella. She's looking for you and she'll find you; she's that determined. And when she does, simply protect her from her past, our past, and her own demons."

Rockwell turned on his heels, his backs not so straight anymore but still bearing his proud stature. Flint looked at Gates who shrugged his shoulders, clearly as baffled as he was. As Rockwell put some distance between them, Flint raised his voice slightly, his demons haunting him once again that day.

"Why did you save her?" Rockwell halted and looked up at the sky before looking over his shoulder. "Why did you save only Isabella?"

"She reminded me of Juliet"

And with that he resumed his stride and left a dejected Flint and a mystified Gates staring at his backs, at his footprints and at their own ghosts of the past.

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**Thank you all once again for the amazing reviews. You guys rock ^_^**

**PS: The next chapter might be posted later than usual. I'm sorry in advance for that ;-)**


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